Parents Refuse to Abort Daughter with Anencephaly

Life, to whatever degree and at whatever level, is a cause for celebration. This was the conviction of Brandi and Michael Rogers, who discovered that their daughter had the fatal disease of anencephaly while in-utero. When she was 20 weeks along, Brandi was told of her daughter's condition and given the option of abortion. What was at first cited as mere fluid on the brain eventually confirmed that their daughter would not lead a natural lifespan. Despite this knowledge, the Rogers were adamant about keeping their daughter for however long God kept her with them. Brandi described her emotional reaction to the medical foresight:

"You’re in a room and you’re listening to your baby’s heartbeat and then you go into another room and they say, ‘Well, you can stop it,’ – that’s extremely hard. We decided on the spot that it wasn’t something we were going to do.”

Undeterred by the pessimism and disparaging remarks regarding her decision, Brandi was determined to be the voice of encouragement for others that she was desperately longing for:

“… I was looking for a voice of someone who went full term and didn’t regret it. I want to be that voice. It’s OK to celebrate Emersyn even though she’s not going to survive. She’s still our third child and she’s still very much loved.”

I personally followed a similar story years ago, where a single mother was confronted with the decision to abort her daughter who neural tube had failed to develop. Despite her fear and lack of emotional and monetary support, the mother, Myah Walker, gave birth to little Faith Walker. Truly, the was the most beautiful child I had ever beheld---her face a constant blush of smiles. The little girl who wasn't supposed to live past birth---and even then, upon the condition of blindness and pronounced vegetation---actually laughed an hiccuped. Moreover, Myah revealed no regret for her decision. In fact, she called it the “best 93 days of my life.”

No one can put a time limit or worth-test on the invaluable gift that God gave men. Sometimes the smallest frame of life is the greatest inspiration of all. Upon her daughter's death, Myah was only grateful for the lesson she had learned in Faith's very brief life:

“She looked up at me and opened her beautiful eyes, and I realized what was happening. I told her to go with Jesus. I told her that I loved her and that it was ok, that I would meet her in Heaven.”